Cloud-based rendering

ABSTRACT

This document describes methods, systems and computer program products related to cloud-based rendering. The subject matter of this document is embodied in a s method that includes receiving, at a server from a remote client application, files related to rendering of a frame, and storing the files related to the rendering of the frame at storage locations local to the server. The files are stored in accordance with an organization of the files on a remote computing device associated with the remote client application. The method also includes rendering the frame from the files using a rendering application determined based on information associated with the files, and making the rendered frame available to the remote client application.

TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates to cloud-based rendering.BACKGROUND

In some cases, rendering is a process of creating frames of computergenerated images or videos from a set of instructions and commands.Rendering can be time consuming and computationally intensive, oftenrequiring expensive and powerful hardware.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, a method includes receiving, at a server from a remoteclient application, files related to rendering of a frame, and storingthe files related to the rendering of the frame at storage locationslocal to the server. The files are stored in accordance with anorganization of the files on a remote computing device associated withthe remote client application. The method also includes rendering theframe from the files using a rendering application determined based oninformation associated with the files, and making the rendered frameavailable to the remote client application.

In another aspect, a method includes integrating within a user-interfaceof an image-editing application, a control to facilitate communicationsbetween the image-editing application and a client application on acomputing device. The method also includes receiving through thecontrol, user-entered information associated with rendering of a frame,and providing the information to the client application for use incommunicating with a remote computing device that renders the framebased on files provided by the client application.

In another aspect, a method includes receiving, at a client applicationexecuting on a computing device, information that is associated withrendering of a frame. The information is received from an image-editingapplication executing on the computing device. The method also includesdetermining, based on the information, locations of files associatedwith the rendering, providing the files to a remote server, andreceiving from the remote server the frame as rendered from the filesprovided to the remote server.

In another aspect, a method includes receiving, at a server from aremote client application, files related to rendering of a frame. Themethod also includes rendering the frame from the files using arendering application determined based on information associated withthe files, and determining a cost associated with using the renderingapplication. The method further includes providing a notification of thecost to the remote client application.

In another aspect, a system includes a storage device and a computingdevice. The computing device includes memory and a processor and isconfigured to receive from a remote client application, files related torendering of a frame. The computing device is also configured to storethe files on the storage device, in accordance with an organization ofthe files on a remote computing device associated with the remote clientapplication. The computing device renders the frame from the files usinga rendering application determined based on information associated withthe files, and make the rendered frame available to the remote clientapplication.

In another aspect, a system includes a computing device having memoryand a processor. The computing device is configured to integrate withina user-interface of an image-editing application, a control tofacilitate communications between the image-editing application and aclient application on a computing device. The computing device is alsoconfigured to receive through the control, user-entered informationassociated with rendering of a frame, and provide the information to theclient application for use in communicating with a remote computingdevice. The remote computing device renders the frame based on filesprovided by the client application.

In another aspect, a system includes a computing device having memoryand a processor. The computing device is configured to receive, at aclient application, information that is associated with rendering of aframe. The information is received from an image-editing applicationalso executing on the computing device. The computing device isconfigured to determine, based on the information, locations of filesassociated with the rendering, provide the files to a remote server, andreceive from the remote server the frame as rendered from the filesprovided to the remote server.

In another aspect, a system includes a computing device having memoryand a processor. The computing device is configured to receive from aremote client application, files related to rendering of a frame. Thecomputing device renders the frame from the files using a renderingapplication determined based on information associated with the files.The computing device is also configured to determine a cost associatedwith using the rendering application, and provide a notification of thecost to the remote client application.

In another aspect, a computer program product includes a computerreadable storage device that is encoded with instructions. Theinstructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause operationsthat include receiving, at a server from a remote client application,files related to rendering of a frame, and storing the files related tothe rendering of the frame at storage locations local to the server. Thefiles are stored in accordance with an organization of the files on aremote computing device associated with the remote client application.The operations also include rendering the frame from the files using arendering application determined based on information associated withthe files, and making the rendered frame available to the remote clientapplication.

In another aspect, a computer program product includes a computerreadable storage device that is encoded with instructions. Theinstructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause operationsthat include integrating within a user-interface of an image-editingapplication, a control to facilitate communications between theimage-editing application and a client application on a computingdevice. The operations also include receiving through the control,user-entered information associated with rendering of a frame, andproviding the information to the client application for use incommunicating with a remote computing device that renders the framebased on files provided by the client application.

In another aspect, a computer program product includes a computerreadable storage device that is encoded with instructions. Theinstructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause operationsthat include receiving, at a client application executing on a computingdevice, information that is associated with rendering of a frame. Theinformation is received from an image-editing application executing onthe computing device. The operations also include determining, based onthe information, locations of files associated with the rendering,providing the files to a remote server, and receiving from the remoteserver the frame as rendered from the files provided to the remoteserver.

In another aspect, a computer program product includes a computerreadable storage device that is encoded with instructions. Theinstructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause operationsthat include receiving, at a server from a remote client application,files related to rendering of a frame. The operations also includerendering the frame from the files using a rendering applicationdetermined based on information associated with the files, anddetermining a cost associated with using the rendering application. Theoperations further include providing a notification of the cost to theremote client application.

Implementations of the above can include one or more of the followingfeatures. A first script identifying a first storage location on theremote computing device can be detected within a file, and replaced witha second script identifying a second storage location local to theserver. A determination can be made that a file required for renderingthe frame is not one of the received files. The client application canbe requested to provide the required file. The required file can beretrieved from a storage location determined based on a file-type of therequired file. The storage location can be a networked storage locationassociated with the file-type. The rendering application can bedetermined based on an s image-editing application associated with theremote computing device. A plug-in can be provided for the image-editingapplication, to integrate a control within a user-interface of theimage-editing application. The control can be configured to facilitatecommunications between the image-editing application and the clientapplication. The computations associated with rendering the frame can beallocated between two or more processors. The frame can be renderedbased on the computation results from the two or more processors.Licensing and usage tracking of the rendering application can be managedfrom the server. The server can be configured to provide one or morefiles for installing the client application on the remote computingdevice. A copy of the rendered frame can be stored at a storage locationlocal to the server.

The plug-in for installing the control within a user-interface of theimage-editing application can be received at the computing deviceexecuting the image editing application from a server. The computingdevice executing the image-editing application can be configured toreceive the frame from the client application, as rendered by the remotecomputing device. Information on the files can be provided to the clientapplication. The user-entered information can include an indication thatthe frame is to be rendered. The client application can be launchedafter receiving the user-entered information, upon determining that theclient application is not executing on the computing device.

The remote server can be polled by the computing device for acommunication. An additional file can be provided to the remote serverbased on determining, from a communication from the remote server, thatthe remote server is requesting the additional file. A notification canbe provided to the remote server that the additional file is notavailable on the computing device, based on determining, from acommunication from the remote server, that the remote server isrequesting the additional file. Information associated with thelocations of the files on the computing device can be provided to theremote server. A communication from the remote server can indicate thatthe frame, as rendered, is available for download to the computingdevice. The communication from the remote server can provide informationon a status of the rendering. Information associated with theimage-editing application on the computing device can be provided to theremote server.

A communication can be initiated with a vendor of the renderingapplication. The cost can be determined in accordance with apre-determined agreement with a vendor of the rendering application. Therendering application can be used in accordance with a pre-determinedagreement with a vendor of the rendering application.

Advantages of the technology described in this document can include oneor more of the following. Computationally intensive rendering jobs canbe outsourced to a cloud-based rendering system. Rendering jobs can beinitiated directly from an application that is used to create and editimages, video, text, and other kinds of content using a clientapplication that manages communications with the cloud-based renderingsystem. Rendering results can be obtained quickly without having toinstall expensive and powerful computing resources.

Other features and advantages are apparent from the following detaileddescription, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an example of a cloud-based rendering system.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart depicting an example sequence of operations forrendering a frame.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart depicting an example sequence of operations forinterfacing between an image-editing application and a clientapplication.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart depicting an example sequence of operations forcommunicating with a remote server to render a frame.

FIGS. 5A-5E show examples of user-interfaces.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a computing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In some cases, rendering is a process of generating a frame of image orvideo from a set of attributes (collectively often referred to as ascene file), using suitable computer programs. The attributes caninclude, for example, geometry, viewpoint, texture, lighting, andshading information, and other descriptors of a virtual scene to bedepicted by the frame. The scene can include graphics, images, texts,and other content that is to be processed and assembled in the processof rendering. The data contained in the scene file is passed to arendering application to be processed based on the attributes and outputto a digital image or raster graphics image file. The process ofrendering is used, for example, in the creation of visual effects formotion pictures, or in visualization and simulation tasks in buildingdesign and architecture. In general, the process of rendering iscomputationally intensive and requires specialized and expensivehardware. The cloud-based rendering described in this document allowsfor the rendering process to be outsourced to a cloud computing system,thus reducing the need for expensive hardware to be installed at auser's location. Multiple processors available to the cloud computingsystem can be used for the rendering process to significantly shortenturnaround time. A client application installed on the user's computingdevice can be used to facilitate communications with the cloud computingsystem. By managing various aspects such as data transfers, datasecurity, storage, computing resources, and licensing, the cloud-basedrendering described in this document empowers devices with limitedcomputing resources to fulfill their rendering needs.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a cloud-based rendering system 100. Thesystem 100 includes a computing device 104 communicating with a server106 over a network 102. As an overview, the computing device 104 sendsone or more files related to rendering of a frame over the network 102to the server 106. The files related to the rendering of the frame canbe collectively referred to as a scene file 108. The scene file caninclude files of various file-types. For example, the scene file 108 caninclude one or more image or video files (e.g., files with one of thefollowing filename extensions: .tif, .jpg, .png, .rgb, .psd, .mov, .dpx,.cin, or .r3d), one or more data files including information onattributes such as geometry, cameras, etc. (e.g., files with one of thefollowing filename extensions: .abc, .obj, .fbx, or .rib), and one ormore files related to an image editing application (e.g., files with oneof the following filename extensions: .nk, .ma, .mb, .max, .ae, .c4d, or.hip). The server 106 is a part of a cloud computing system thatexecutes the rendering process based on the scene file 108, and makes arendered frame 110 available for the computing device 106. In someimplementations, the rendered frame 110 is made available by beingtransmitted to the computing device 104. In some embodiments, the server106 provides a notification to the computing device 104 that therendered frame 110 is available for download. The server 106 can accessa local storage device 112. The computing device 104 can access acorresponding local storage device 116. A local storage device for agiven entity (such as a server or a computing device) can be defined asa storage device that is directly connected to the entity, or as astorage device that can be directly accessed by the entity. Entitiesthat are connected over the network 102 can be considered to be remoteto one another. Accordingly, the computing device 104 is remote withrespect to the server 106 and vice-versa. The system 100 can alsoinclude a networked storage 114 that can be accessed over the network102.

The computing device 104 (which can also be referred to as a clientcomputing device, client device, or simply client) is a device on whicha user executes an image-editing application 118 to define a computergenerated image or video frame. The computing device 104 can be, forexample, a laptop or desktop computer, a mobile device, or a tabletdevice, or another device capable of executing the image-editingapplication 118. The image-editing application 118 can include, forexample, a computer graphics software package such as Maya®, or 3dsMax®, both developed by Autodesk Inc., a digital compositing softwarepackage such as Nuke™ developed by The Foundry Visionmongers Ltd., oranother commercially available application that allows for creating orediting computer-generated images and graphics. The image-editingapplication 118 can be used to define various attributes related to animage or video. For example, the image-editing application can be usedto define one or more frames of a length of an animation, an appearanceof an image, a size of an image, or an object, text or other contentwithin an image. The appearance of each of the frames to be rendered canbe defined or modified using various attributes, such as, shading,texture, shadows, highlights, depth of field, blurs, transparency,reflections, or another attribute that affect how an image appears to aviewer. is In some implementations, the image-editing application 118 isexecuted on the computing device 104. Alternatively, the image-editingapplication 118 can be provided from a remote server, for example as aweb-based service. In some cases, the image-editing application 118 canbe accessed through a browser executing on the computing device 104.

In some implementations, the image attributes defined using theimage-editing application 118 can be represented using the scene file108. The scene file 108 can be processed by a rendering application toproduce a rendered frame 110, which can be displayed as a visualrepresentation on a suitable display device. Portions of the scene file108 can be initially stored in a storage device 116 local to thecomputing device 104. The storage device 116 can include, for example, ahard drive, memory, a removable storage device, or an optical disk thatcan be accessed by the computing device 104.

In some implementations, the computing device 104 provides the scenefile 108 to a cloud computing system represented by the server 106. Ingeneral, a cloud computing system allows for the use of remote computingresources (hardware and software) that are delivered as a service over anetwork. In the present example, the server 106 can include (orcommunicate with) multiple processors that can work in parallel toexpedite the rendering of the frame 110 from the scene file 108.

In some implementations, communication between the computing device 104and the server 106 can be facilitated by a client application 120executing on the computing device 104. The client application 120 can beinvoked, for example, by a control integrated into a user-interface ofthe image-editing application 118. The control can be integrated intothe user-interface of the image-editing application 118 by a plug-indownloaded from a remote source such as a server, onto the computingdevice 104. In some implementations, at least one of the plug-in or theclient application 120 can be invoked by accessing the cloud-computingsystem server through a browser executing on the computing device 104.In such cases, a user can be asked to set-up an account via a web-basedinterface to download the plug-in or the client application onto thecomputing device 104. An example of an account management interface 500is depicted in FIG. 5A. The client application 120 can also be anapplication that executes separately from the image-editing application118.

In some implementations, the client application 120 can be configuredusing a user-interface such as the user-interface 565 depicted in FIG.5D. Various aspects and functionalities of the client application 120can be configured using such the user interface 565. For example, theuser-interface 565 can be used to provide the client application 120with the location where a security key is stored. The security key canbe provided from the cloud computing system (for example, by anadministrator) upon setting up of an account. The security key candetermine a level of authorization associated with the user of theaccount. The security key can also be used by the client application 120to encrypt and/or decrypt data and files communicated between thecomputing device 104 and the server 106. In some implementations, thesecurity key can be generated at the server 106 using a cryptographicnetwork protocol such as secure shell (SSH). The user-interface 565 canalso be used to specify other parameters associated with the clientapplication 120, such as, the number of jobs that the client application120 can simultaneously upload to the server 106, the frequency at whichthe client application 120 would poll the server 106, and the locationof a folder the client application 120 is allowed to access.

In some implementations, the client application 120 manages thecommunications between the computing device 104 and the server 106. Forexample, once a user indicates a preference to launch a rendering job(e.g. using the control integrated in the image-editing application118), the client application 120 facilitates exchanging files andmessages between the computing device 104 and the server 106 in order toachieve the completion of the rendering by the server. In someimplementations, the client application 120 sends a message to theserver 106 that a rendering job needs to be performed. The server 106,in response, can send a request to the client application 120 for thescene file 108 required for the rendering job. The request can be sent,for example, upon determining that enough processors are available tothe server 106 to perform the rendering within a threshold time period.If enough processors are not available, or the cloud computing system isunavailable for some other reason (e.g., maintenance), the server 106can send a message to the client application 120 indicating theunavailability and/or a time the system is expected to be availableagain.

The client application 120 can manage uploading the scene file 108 fromthe computing device to the server 106. In some implementations, theclient application 120 determines the locations of the one or more filesassociated with the scene file 108 on receiving information that arendering job is to be uploaded to the server 106. The clientapplication 120 can be configured to verify that the computing device104 and/or a user of the computing device 104 is authorized/permitted touse the services provided by the cloud computing system through theserver 106. Upon the verification, the client application 120 canprovide one or more files associated with the scene file 108 to theserver 106.

In some implementations, the client application 120 can receive, fromthe server 106, one or more messages related to the scene file 108provided to the server 106. For example, the server 106 can requestinformation on modification dates associated with one or more files fromthe scene file 108. In some implementations, this information is used bythe server to determine if a copy of a file from the scene file 108already exists in the storage device 112 local to the server, and ifthat copy represents the most updated version of the file. The server106 can also request one or more additional files based on determiningthat the one or more additional files is needed for the rendering jobrequested by the client application 120. In response to the messagesfrom the server 106, the client application can provide the requestedinformation and/or files, if such information or files are available atthe computing device 104.

In some implementations, the client application 120 continues to pollthe server 106 for a progress report of the rendering job afterproviding the files and information required for the rendering job. Thepolling can be done, for example, by periodically sending a message tothe server 106 requesting a status update. In some implementations, theserver 106 automatically provides, to the client application 120, aperiodic status update. The client application 120 can be configured tofacilitate display of the status update on the computing device 104, forexample, via a user-interface. An example of such an user-interface 570is depicted in FIG. 5E. In some implementations, the status update caninclude information that a rendered frame 110 is ready to be downloaded.Upon receiving such information, the client application 120 downloadsthe rendered frame 110 on to the computing device 104. The clientapplication 120 can also be configured to communicate with theimage-editing application 118 to determine if a rendering job is to beuploaded to the server 106.

The cloud computing system that performs the rendering job isrepresented by the server 106. The server 106 can include (orcommunicate with) multiple processors that can process a rendering jobunder a distributed computing framework. In some implementations,hundreds or thousands of processors can be used, thereby providingsubscribers of the cloud computing system with scalable, on-demandcomputing capabilities. The server 106 can be configured to distribute agiven rendering job (as represented by, for example, the scene file 108)to multiple processors and combine the results to produce the renderedframe 110. In some implementations, the server 106 can provide a plug-into the computing device, wherein the plug-in integrates a control withinthe image-editing application 118 to communicate with the clientapplication 120. The server 106 can also provide one or more files forinstalling the client application 120 on the computing device 104.

The server 106 can be configured to manage various aspects related to arendering job requested by the client application 120. For example, uponreceiving a scene file 108, the server 106 can process the scene file108 to determine if additional files may be needed for the requestedrendering job. Depending upon the file-types of the additional files(for example, upon determining that a file is related to a particularsoftware package), the server 106 can either send a request to theclient application 120 to provide the additional files, or retrieve thefiles from another location. In some implementations, if the server 106determines that the additional files are available at a networkedstorage device 114, the server 106 may retrieve the additional filesdirectly from the networked storage device 114. For example, if arequired additional file is determined to be related to a particularsoftware package, the server can be configured to contact a centralrepository associated with the software package to directly retrieve therequired additional file.

In some implementations, the server 106 can be configured to determineif a version of an additional required file exists on the local storagedevice 112. Upon such determination, the server 106 may send a messageto the client application requesting information if the file has beenmodified at the computing device 104 since the last upload. The server106 may only request the file from the computing device if the file hasbeen modified since the last upload, else, the server can use theversion of the file available from the local storage device 112.

Upon receiving the files required for the rendering job, the server 106can begin the s rendering process. In some implementations, the server106 selects an appropriate rendering application for the rendering jobbased on the files and information provided by the client application120. The rendering application can be selected, for example, based onthe image-editing application 118. The selected rendering applicationcan be executed by the server, and possibly by the multiple processorsparticipating in the rendering process, to produce the rendered frame110 from the files and information received from the client application120 or retrieved by the server 106.

In some implementations, the server 106 can be configured to managelicensing and usage-tracking with respect to the selected renderingapplication. For example, for a rendering application selected for agiven rendering job, the server 106 may track an associatedusage-parameter (for example, total usage time or job size), receivebilling details from a vendor of the selected rendering application andprovide an invoice for the usage. In some implementations, the server106 can be configured to maintain logs that reflect the usage details.By managing licensing and usage-tracking, the server 106 preventsunauthorized use of the rendering application while relieving theend-user (i.e. the user of the computing device 104) from the burden.Further, multiple rendering applications can be made available for usewith files from various sources and image-editing applications.

In some implementations, the files received from the client application120 are stored on the local storage device 112 based on file-typesidentified for the received files. For example, if a given received fileis related to a particular software package, the server 106 can beconfigured to store the given file within a folder reserved for storingfiles for the particular software package. In some implementations, if areceived file is identified as a script file, the server 106 scans thescript file for occurrences of file-paths identifying storage locationsspecific to the storage device 116 local to the computing device 104.The file-paths can then be automatically replaced by the server 106 withrevised file-paths identifying storage locations specific to the localstorage device 112. The files associated with the corresponding revisedfile-paths are then stored at storage locations specified by the revisedfile-paths. In this way, the server 106 organizes the files receivedfrom the computing device 104 on the local storage device 112 in asystematic fashion. In some implementations, the organization of thereceived files within the local storage device 112 includes mirroringthe organization of the corresponding files on the storage device 116local to the computing device 116.

During the rendering process, the server 106 can provide periodicupdates on the process to the client application 120. For example, ifthe rendering job involves rendering multiple frames, the updates caninclude providing a preview (e.g. a thumbnail image) of each renderedframe as they are produced. In some implementations, once a renderedframe 110 is produced, the server 106 makes the rendered frame 110available for the client application 120 to download on the computingdevice 104. The server 106 can also store a copy of the rendered frame110 on the local storage device 112. This way, if a user needs todownload the rendered frame 110 again (e.g. on a different computingdevice), the user can do so without having to execute the renderingprocess again. The server 106 can also retain the scene file 108 and oneor more additional files related to the completed rendering job(possibly tied to a user account) such that at least some of the filesneed not be uploaded again for executing a similar rendering process.

FIG. 2 shows a flowchart 200 depicting an example sequence of operationsfor rendering a frame. The sequence of operations depicted by theflowchart 200 can be performed on a device such as the server 106described with respect to FIG. 1. The operations include receiving filesrelated to rendering of a frame from a remote client application (202).The remote client application can be executed on a computing device(e.g. the computing device 104 described with reference to FIG. 1). Thereceived files can include a scene file having information on variousattributes and objects that are to be used in the rendering of theframe.

Operations can include storing the received files at local storagelocations determined based on identifying file-types for the receivedfiles (204). For example, if a received file is identified to be of aparticular file-type, the particular received file can be stored at aparticular location. The particular location can be determined, forexample, in accordance with a storage location of the corresponding fileat a remote storage location. If a received file is identified as ascript file, the file can be scanned to identify occurrences of textualrepresentation of file-paths related to one or more additional files. Insuch cases, the additional files can be stored in accordance with thetextual representations of the file-paths. In some implementations,where the textual representations are specific to remote storagelocations, the representations are replaced by revised textualrepresentations of file-paths specific to local storage locations, andthe additional files are stored in accordance with the revised textualrepresentations.

Operations also include rendering the frame on two or more processors(206). For example, the process of rendering the frame can bedistributed over multiple processors for parallel execution under adistributed computing framework. In some implementations, when multiplerendering jobs are to be executed, distributing the jobs can be donebased on priority information associated with the jobs. For example,when only a limited amount of computing resources are available, a highpriority job may be processed before a lower priority job, even if thelower priority job is received earlier. The computation results from themultiple processors can be combined to produce the rendered frame.

Operations also include making the rendered frame available to theremote client application (208). This can include, for example, storingthe rendered frame at a storage location that the remote clientapplication can access to download the rendered frame. In someimplementations, when a rendered frame is made available, a message canbe sent to the remote client with a notification that the rendered frameis available for download.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart 300 depicting an example sequence of operationsfor interfacing between an image-editing application and a clientapplication. The sequence of operations depicted by the flowchart 300can be performed, for example, at the computing device 104 describedwith reference to FIG. 1. The image-editing application and the clientapplications can be substantially similar to the applications 118 and120, respectively, described with reference to FIG. 1.

Operations can include integrating a control within a user-interface ofan image-editing application (302). The control can be integrated, forexample, using a plug-in for the image-editing application. The plug-incan be downloaded and installed for the control to be integrated withinthe user-interface of the image-editing application. The control caninclude, for example, a virtual button, a checkbox, a tab, or anothergraphical representation. The control may be selectable using amouse-click, or by touching a relevant portion of a touch-screendisplay. In some implementations, the control may not be visible on auser-interface but can be invoked as needed, for example, using anappropriate script-based command. An example of the control is depictedin the user-interface shown in FIG. 5B. In this particular example, thecontrol 510 appears as a separate tab within the user-interface 505 andis similar to other controls within the user-interface 505. In someimplementations, a control for activating the client application canalso be integrated with a graphics pipeline management tool orproduction tracking software package such as Shotgun®, developed byShotgun Software Inc.

Operations include receiving through the control user-enteredinformation associated with the rendering of a frame (304). Referringagain to the example of FIG. 5B, a user can select the control like anyother control within the user-interface 500 to begin the rendering. Insome implementations, selecting the control brings up anotheruser-interface through which additional information related to therendering can be entered by the user. An example of such auser-interface is shown in FIG. 5C. The user-interface 550 depicted inthe example of FIG. 5C allows the user to provide details, such as, alocation of the files related to the rendering, a name of the renderingproject or job, a priority associated with a rendering job, a range offrames (e.g. a length of a shot being rendered), frame steps (e.g.whether every frame, or every second frame, or every third frame is tobe rendered), layers to be included in a rendering job, location of anoutput directory, desired resolution, a username and password associatedwith an account, and other parameters and attributes associated with therendering. After entering the information, the user can select a control(such as the control 590) to launch the rendering job.

Operations also include providing the information to a clientapplication communicating with a remote computing device (306). Theremote computing device renders the frame based on files provided by theclient application. In some implementations, if the client informationis not executing, operations can also include launching the clientapplication such that the information can be provided to the clientapplication.

FIG. 4 shows a flowchart 400 depicting an example sequence of operationsfor communicating with a remote server to render a frame. The sequenceof operations depicted in the flowchart 400 can be performed, forexample, by the client application described with reference to FIG. 1.Operations include receiving from an image-editing application,information associated with rendering of a frame (402). The informationfrom the image-editing application can be received, for example, when auser activates or selects a control integrated within a user-interfaceof the image-editing application. The information can include forexample, an indication that a rendering job is to be launched, locationof one or more files and/or folders related to the rendering job, anoutput directory where the rendered frame is to be saved, and one ormore attributes related to the rendering job.

Operations also include determining locations of files associated withthe rendering (404). The determination can be made, for example, basedon information provided by the user. One or more of the files can thenbe retrieved from the determined location for forwarding to a remoteserver.

Operations also include providing the files to the remote server (406).In some implementations, copies of the files are uploaded to a locationaccessible by the remote server. Metadata information related to thefiles can also be provided. The metadata information of a file caninclude, for example, a file-type, location information, and file size.In some implementations, a file is provided to the remote server basedon determining that the remote server is requesting the file.

Operations also include receiving the frame as rendered from the filesprovided to the remote server (408). In some implementations, when therendering involves multiple frames, the frames can be receivedsequentially as and when they are produced. Alternatively, multipleframes can be received together. Receiving the frame can includereceiving a notification that a rendered frame is available fordownloading. A particular remote location can then be accessed todownload the rendered frame.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a computing device 600 and a mobile device650, which may be used with the techniques described here. Referring toFIG. 1, the computing device 104 could be examples of the computingdevice 600 or the mobile device 600, and the server 106 could includeone or more computer devices 600. Computing device 600 is intended torepresent various forms of digital computers, such as laptops, desktops,workstations, personal digital assistants, servers, blade servers,mainframes, and other appropriate computers. Computing device 650 isintended to represent various forms of mobile devices, such as personaldigital assistants, cellular telephones, smartphones, and other similarcomputing devices. The components shown here, their connections andrelationships, and their functions, are meant to be examples only, andare not meant to limit implementations of the techniques describedand/or claimed in this document.

Computing device 600 includes a processor 602, memory 604, a storagedevice 606, a high-speed interface 608 connecting to memory 604 andhigh-speed expansion ports 610, and a low speed interface 612 connectingto low speed bus 614 and storage device 606. Each of the components 602,604, 606, 608, 610, and 612, are interconnected using various busses,and may be mounted on a common motherboard or in other manners asappropriate. The processor 602 can process instructions for executionwithin the computing device 600, including instructions stored in thememory 604 or on the storage device 606 to display graphical informationfor a GUI on an external input/output device, such as display 616coupled to high speed interface 608. In other implementations, multipleprocessors and/or multiple buses may be used, as appropriate, along withmultiple memories and types of memory. Also, multiple computing devices600 may be connected, with each device providing portions of thenecessary operations (e.g., as a server bank, a group of blade servers,or a multi-processor system). In some implementations the computingdevice can include a graphics processing unit. The computing device 600can also be configured to execute applications such as the image-editingapplication 118 and the client application 120 described with referenceto FIG. 1.

The memory 604 stores information within the computing device 600. Inone implementation, the memory 604 is a volatile memory unit or units.In another implementation, the memory 604 is a non-volatile memory unitor units. The memory 604 may also be another form of computer-readablemedium, such as a magnetic or optical disk.

The storage device 606 is capable of providing mass storage for thecomputing device 600. Referring to FIG. 1, the storage devices 112, 114,or 116 could be examples of the storage device 606. In oneimplementation, the storage device 606 may be or contain acomputer-readable medium, such as a floppy disk device, a hard diskdevice, an optical disk device, or a tape device, a flash memory orother similar solid state memory device, or an array of devices,including devices in a storage area network or other configurations. Acomputer program product can be tangibly embodied in an informationcarrier. The computer program product may also contain instructionsthat, when executed, perform one or more methods, such as thosedescribed above. The information carrier is a computer- ormachine-readable medium, such as the memory 604, the storage device 606,memory on processor 602, or a propagated signal.

The high speed controller 608 manages bandwidth-intensive operations forthe computing device 600, while the low speed controller 612 manageslower bandwidth-intensive operations. Such allocation of functions is anexample only. In one implementation, the high-speed controller 608 iscoupled to memory 604, display 616 (e.g., through a graphics processoror accelerator), and to high-speed expansion ports 610, which may acceptvarious expansion cards (not shown). In the implementation, low-speedcontroller 612 is coupled to storage device 606 and low-speed expansionport 614. The low-speed expansion port, which may include variouscommunication ports (e.g., USB, Bluetooth, Ethernet, wireless Ethernet)may be coupled to one or more input/output devices, such as a keyboard,a pointing device, a scanner, or a networking device such as a switch orrouter, e.g., through a network adapter.

The computing device 600 may be implemented in a number of differentforms, as shown in the figure. For example, it may be implemented as astandard server 620, or multiple times in a group of such servers. Itmay also be implemented as part of a rack server system 624. Inaddition, it may be implemented in a personal computer such as a laptopcomputer 622. Alternatively, components from computing device 600 may becombined with other components in a mobile device (not shown), such asdevice 650. Each of such devices may contain one or more of computingdevice 600, 650, and an entire system may be made up of multiplecomputing devices 600, 650 communicating with each other.

Computing device 650 includes a processor 652, memory 664, aninput/output device such as a display 654, a communication interface666, and a transceiver 668, among other components. The device 650 mayalso be provided with a storage device, such as a microdrive or otherdevice, to provide additional storage. Each of the components 650, 652,664, 654, 666, and 668, are interconnected using various buses, andseveral of the components may be mounted on a common motherboard or inother manners as appropriate.

The processor 652 can execute instructions within the computing device650, including instructions stored in the memory 664. The processor maybe implemented as a chipset of chips that include separate and multipleanalog and digital processors. The processor may provide, for example,for coordination of the other components of the device 650, such ascontrol of user-interfaces, applications run by device 650, and wirelesscommunication by device 650.

Processor 652 may communicate with a user through control interface 658and is display interface 656 coupled to a display 654. The display 654may be, for example, a TFT LCD (Thin-Film-Transistor Liquid CrystalDisplay) or an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display, or otherappropriate display technology. The display interface 656 may compriseappropriate circuitry for driving the display 654 to present graphicaland other information to a user. The control interface 658 may receivecommands from a user and convert them for submission to the processor652. In addition, an external interface 662 may be provide incommunication with processor 652, so as to enable near areacommunication of device 650 with other devices. External interface 662may provide, for example, for wired communication in someimplementations, or for wireless communication in other implementations,and multiple interfaces may also be used.

The memory 664 stores information within the computing device 650. Thememory 664 can be implemented as one or more of a computer-readablemedium or media, a volatile memory unit or units, or a non-volatilememory unit or units. Expansion memory 674 may also be provided andconnected to device 650 through expansion interface 672, which mayinclude, for example, a SIMM (Single In Line Memory Module) cardinterface. Such expansion memory 674 may provide extra storage space fordevice 650, or may also store applications or other information fordevice 650. Specifically, expansion memory 674 may include instructionsto carry out or supplement the processes described above, and mayinclude secure information also. Thus, for example, expansion memory 674may be provide as a security module for device 650, and may beprogrammed with instructions that permit secure use of device 650. Inaddition, secure applications may be provided via the SIMM cards, alongwith additional information, such as placing identifying information onthe SIMM card in a non-hackable manner.

The memory may include, for example, flash memory and/or NVRAM memory,as discussed below. In one implementation, a computer program product istangibly embodied in an information carrier. The computer programproduct contains instructions that, when executed, perform one or moremethods, such as those described above. The information carrier is acomputer- or machine-readable medium, such as the memory 664, expansionmemory 574, memory on processor 652, or a propagated signal that may bereceived, for example, over transceiver 668 or external interface 662.

Device 650 may communicate wirelessly through communication interface666, which may include digital signal processing circuitry wherenecessary. Communication interface 666 may provide for communicationsunder various modes or protocols, such as GSM voice calls, SMS, EMS, orMMS messaging, CDMA, TDMA, PDC, WCDMA, CDMA2000, or GPRS, among others.Such communication may occur, for example, through radio-frequencytransceiver 668. In addition, short-range communication may occur, suchas using a Bluetooth, WiFi, or other such transceiver (not shown). Inaddition, GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver module 670 mayprovide additional navigation- and location-related wireless data todevice 650, which may be used as appropriate by applications running ondevice 650.

Device 650 may also communicate audibly using audio codec 660, which mayreceive spoken information from a user and convert it to usable digitalinformation. Audio codec 660 may likewise generate audible sound for auser, such as through a speaker, e.g., in a handset of device 650. Suchsound may include sound from voice telephone calls, may include recordedsound (e.g., voice messages, music files, and so forth) and may alsoinclude sound generated by applications operating on device 650.

The computing device 650 may be implemented in a number of differentforms, as shown in the figure. For example, it may be implemented as acellular telephone 680. It may also be implemented as part of asmartphone 682, personal digital assistant, tablet computer, or othersimilar mobile device.

Various implementations of the systems and techniques described here canbe realized in digital electronic circuitry, integrated circuitry,specially designed ASICs (application specific integrated circuits),computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof.These various implementations can include implementation in one or morecomputer programs that are executable and/or interpretable on aprogrammable system including at least one programmable processor, whichmay be special or general purpose, coupled to receive data andinstructions from, and to transmit data and instructions to, a storagesystem, at least one input device, and at least one output device.

These computer programs (also known as programs, software, softwareapplications or code) include machine instructions for a programmableprocessor, and can be implemented in a high-level procedural and/orobject-oriented programming language, and/or in assembly/machinelanguage. As used herein, the terms “machine-readable medium”“computer-readable medium” refers to any computer program product,apparatus and/or device (e.g., magnetic discs, optical disks, memory,Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs)) used to provide machine instructionsand/or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readablemedium that receives machine instructions.

To provide for interaction with a user, the systems and techniquesdescribed here can be implemented on a computer having a display device(e.g., a CRT (cathode ray tube) or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor)for displaying information to the user and a keyboard and a pointingdevice (e.g., a mouse or a trackball) by which the user can provideinput to the computer. Other kinds of devices can be used to provide forinteraction with a user as well. For example, feedback provided to theuser can be any form of sensory feedback (e.g., visual feedback,auditory feedback, or tactile feedback). Input from the user can bereceived in any form, including acoustic, speech, or tactile input.

The systems and techniques described here can be implemented in acomputing system that includes a back end component (e.g., as a dataserver), or that includes a middleware component (e.g., an applicationserver), or that includes a front end component (e.g., a client computerhaving a graphical user-interface or a Web browser through which a usercan interact with an implementation of the systems and techniquesdescribed here), or any combination of such back end, middleware, orfront end components. The components of the system can be interconnectedby any form or medium of digital data communication (e.g., a networksuch as the network 102 described with reference to FIG. 1). Examples ofnetworks include a local area network (“LAN”), a wide area network(“WAN”), and the Internet.

The computing system can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network such as the network 102. Therelationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer programsrunning on the respective computers and having a client-serverrelationship to each other.

Other implementations are also within the scope of the following claims.

1.-19. (canceled)
 20. A method comprising: receiving, at a clientapplication executing on a computing device from an image-editingapplication executing on the computing device, information that isassociated with rendering of a frame; determining, based on theinformation, locations of files associated with the rendering; providingthe files to a remote server; and receiving from the remote server theframe as rendered from the files provided to the remote server.
 21. Themethod of claim 20, comprising polling the remote server for acommunication.
 22. The method of claim 20, comprising providing anadditional file to the remote server based on determining, from acommunication from the remote server, that the remote server isrequesting the additional file.
 23. The method of claim 20 comprisingproviding a notification to the remote server that an additional file isnot available on the computing device, based on determining, from acommunication from the remote server, that the remote server isrequesting the additional file.
 24. The method of claim 20 comprisingproviding to the remote server, information associated with thelocations of the files on the computing device.
 25. The method of claim21 wherein the communication indicates that the frame, as rendered, isavailable for download to the computing device.
 26. The method of claim21 wherein the communication provides information on a status of therendering.
 27. The method of claim 20 comprising providing to the remoteserver, information associated with the image-editing application on thecomputing device. 28.-45. (canceled)
 46. A computer program productcomprising a computer readable storage device encoded with instructions,which upon execution by one or more processors, causes operationscomprising: receiving, at a client application executing on a computingdevice from an image-editing application executing on the computingdevice, information that is associated with rendering of a frame;determining, based on the information, locations of files associatedwith the rendering; providing the files to a remote server; andreceiving from the remote server the frame as rendered from the filesprovided to the remote server.
 47. The computer program product of claim46 comprising instructions for polling the remote server for acommunication.
 48. The computer program product of claim 46 comprisinginstructions for providing an additional file to the remote server basedon determining, from a communication from the remote server, that theremote server is requesting the additional file.
 49. The computerprogram product of claim 48 comprising instructions for providing to theremote server, information associated with the locations of the files onthe computing device.
 50. The computer program product of claim 48comprising instructions for providing to the remote server, informationassociated with the image-editing application on the computing device.51.-58. (canceled)